Dr. Keel
Lectures MTWHF 10:00-11:45 am, in room 227 Gallalee
Office hours for AY101: in 311B Gallalee, 1:15-3:15 Wednesday, 1:30-3:00 Tuesday, and other times by appointment (348-1641). I can also be reached by email at wkeel@ua.edu .
Text: The Essential Cosmic Perspective, 4th ed., by Bennett et al.
The target topics for each lecture are listed below, with relevant chapters in parentheses. Copies of my lecture outlines are also available at the Supply Store. Additional activities - telescope usage and computer/network resources - will be available. A Web page for this section of AY 101 is available at http://www.astr.ua.edu/keel/ay101 .
This course deals with the objects and techniques of astronomical investigation. We will consider planets, stars, and galaxies, with regard to their physical nature, history, and interrelations. Course objectives are:
| Date | Topic (chapter) |
|---|---|
| June 3 | Ideas in science; cosmic distances and sizes (1) |
| June 4 | Our view of the Sky; eclipses; astronomy's ancient roots (2,3) |
| June 5 | Copernicus, Galileo and Newton; astronomy becomes a science (3) |
| June 6 | Motion, energy, gravitation, and light (4,5) |
| June 9 | Telescopes for the visible and invisible (5) |
| June 10 | Our solar system and its origin (6) |
| June 11 | The terrestrial worlds: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars (7) |
| June 12 | Jovian worlds, their moons, and rings (8) |
| June 13 | Moon hoaxes, faces on Mars, and missing days - what should we believe? |
| June 19 | Asteroids, comets and other "debris" (9) |
| June 20 | Our local star and its nuclear furnace - the Sun (10) [End of withdrawal period] |
| June 23 | Surveying the stars (11) |
| June 24 | The birth and lives of the stars (12-13.1) |
| June 25 | Massive stars; relativity, neutron stars, and black holes (12,13) |
| June 26 | The Milky Way galaxy and its interstellar matter (14) |
| June 27 | Other galaxies (15, 16.2) |
| June 30 | Galaxy history and supermassive black holes (15, 16.3) |
| July 1 | Cosmology - seeking the Big Picture (16.4-17) |
| July 1 | Evening - internet observatory session |
| July 2 | Life in the Universe (18) |
Grading and exam policies: The course grade will be based on 11 in-class quizzes (2/3) and a comprehensive final exam (1/3). The worst quiz grade will be dropped in calculating the average grade, thus allowing a single miss with no makeup quizzes (which are done only for medical reasons or because of required absences). Attendance points may be given in conjunction with nighttime viewing sessions during the course, and there will be an opportunity for extra-credit essays. The final exam is scheduled for 8:00 a.m., Thursday, July 3
Other important information:
Academic misconduct: All students in attendance at the University of Alabama are expected to be honorable and to observe standards of conduct appropriate to a community of scholars. The University expects from its students a higher standard of conduct than the minimum required to avoid discipline. Academic misconduct includes all acts of dishonesty in any academically related matter and any knowing or intentional help, or conspiracy to help, another student. The Academic Misconduct Disciplinary Policy will be followed in the event of academic misconduct.
Students with disabilities are encouraged to register with the Office of Disability Services (348-4285). Thereafter, you are invited to schedule appointments to see me during office hours to discuss accomodations or other special needs.